ASUU strike: Nigerian Students To Shut Down Abuja Airport, Kaduna Highway Today

Students under the aegis of the National Association of Nigerian Students has vowed to block the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja and Kaduna-Abuja Highway today, Wednesday, 21 September 2022.

The blockage, we learnt, is part of the students' protest against the ongoing strike action by members of Academic Staff Union of Universities.

The chairman, NANS National Task Force, ‘EndASUUstrike,’ Olumide Ojo, who made this known on Tuesday, said students did not protest at the Apapa Port as earlier scheduled for Tuesday to allow them strategise and plan for an impactful protest on Wednesday (today).

The Nigerian Voice recalls that the students had on Monday blocked the access roads to both the local and international terminals of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, leaving air passengers and others stranded.

In their quest for academic resumption, Ojo said, “We decided to use today (Tuesday) to appraise our protest on Monday at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja. By tomorrow (Wednesday) morning, we will be grounding the Nnamdi Azikwe Airport, Abuja and Kaduna-Abuja Expressway.

“We will also be at Iwo Road, Ibadan where we will hold a press conference. It will be a simultaneous action. On Thursday, our colleagues in the South-South and South East will mobilise for a showdown too.”

Also, the Coordinator of the South West Zone D of NANS, Adegboye Olatunji, confirmed the Wednesday plan, saying “Yes, there will be protests at the Abuja Airport on Wednesday.”

Similarly, the National President, NANS, Usman Barambu, said Nigerian students had overstayed at home, saying the government should open the universities so that students could go back to school.

Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Government has issued warning to the students against moves to block the Kaduna-Abuja Road.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the state Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, explained that while the state government was not depriving citizens of the right to express discontent, public security and safety must always be the foremost consideration.

The statement read, “The Kaduna State Government wishes to remind members of the public that any move to block the Kaduna-Abuja Road (or any routes) to express dissatisfaction, is unacceptable and a prelude to the breakdown of law and order.

“The danger of barricading a strategic route like the Kaduna-Abuja Road is better appreciated within the context of ongoing security operations covering the route, and other areas of interest. Citizens are therefore strongly advised against participating in such processions.”